Maximum Ride, the Seven Non-Dwarfs, and the Huntsman
by zammielicious98
Summary: When Max's mother, Valencia, disappears, her father, Jeb remarries to Brigid. Jeb thinks its best for Max. But Brigid is the worst thing that ever happens to Max. Based on Snow White. FAX included (duh ;p). Rated T for swearing. All Human, mostly normal with some random oddities. R&R!
1. Prologue

**Prologue - The Good Ol' Days**

* * *

_''Mommy!'' the child cried, smiling._

_'Mommy' smiled. This child was the light of her world. She would do anything for her child._

_"Mommy!" the child called again._

_"Here Maximum!" her mother replied._

_Maximum jumped into her mother's arms, laughing and smiling like nothing else in the world mattered. It was only her and her dearest mother._

_Her mother, Valencia, was also smiling. Her heart was beating with joy. This day truly couldn't have gotten any better._

_Mother and daughter, walking hand in hand. Pure happiness radiated off of them as they walked through the streets. People were jealous of the cute little child and the gorgeous mother._

_Those were the good ol' days._


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 - The Dark Days**

* * *

Max jolted awake. She's been having the same dream for about a week now. Those dreams were her long lost memories. The times when life was so beautiful.

But good things only last for so long.

It's only been a year (and 2 weeks) since her mother disappeared. Some assume that Valencia is dead, while others believe she is out in the world somewhere. A body hasn't been found, but she's off the grid completely. Max's hope for her loving mother's return was slowly fading.

Max carefully got out of bed and wondered what today would bring.

_Knock, knock, knock._

She looked up, just as her father, Jeb, walked in.

"Morning, Snow."

Max grinned. She loved the nickname her father gave her. She was born in the winter, and was absolutely in love with snow. It was the most beautiful thing ever, besides her mother, of course.

"Morning, dad."

Jeb smiled. "Get your lazy butt up and come down for breakfast. I have some exciting news."

Max cocked her head. Life has been boring, even hell, the past year (and 2 weeks). Her mother's disappearance really brought her down. She was no longer the cute little kid.

Jeb turned around and left, humming very happily.

_Odd_, Max thought. Her father hasn't hummed since... Well, never. That was a first.

Very curious about her father's news, she quickly got ready. Fastest ever, actually.

Downstairs and at the table, no longer than 5 minutes, Max gulped down, literally, her whole breakfast.

"So. Max."

Startled, Max started choking. Blinking away her now watery eyes, she looked up to see her father, whom she didn't notice until now.

"Yes, dad?"

Jeb smiled. Wider, if that was even possible. It was pretty scary.

"Well, as I mentioned earlier..."

Max rolled her eyes. "Hurry up, will ya?"

Jeb chuckled. "Well... I'm remarrying."

For the second time that morning, Max choked.

"You're what?" Max was shocked beyond belief. It was only a freaking year (and 2 weeks) ago. Her mother was missing, and he just decides to remarry? What if she was still alive? How would she feel? Well, she was the one who ran off... But that's not the point.

Max shook her head. She was still too shocked to think straight, or to even say anything. So she just asked, "Who."

"Oh, a nice sweet lady I met at work. She came about 3 months ago, and ever since, we've been dating. Now, we think we're ready to marry. I even proposed to her. We're engaged." Jeb announced and showed her the foreign-looking engagement ring that shone on his finger. He was smiling like a kid who first discovered candy. "And, I invited her to come for dinner today so you two can meet!"

Max just stared. There was no way this was happening. This must be a dream. A very very very bad dream.

"No...No... _NO!_" Max bursted.

Jeb stopped smiling and froze. This was not the reaction he had hoped to see from his daughter.

"Max? Are you-"

Max stood up. "NO! Leave me alone! You.. You... _TRAITOR!_"

And with that, Max stormed off, extremely pissed. She even punched a wall on her way out.

"That was the new wall I just got renovated!" Jeb called after her.

_Bastard_, Max thought angrily.

She grabbed her bag and ran out the door, hoping not to run into Jeb on her way out.

Max raged through the first few blocks, and if life was a movie, there would be flames flying out of her.

"ARGHHH!" Max screamed.

She punched a tree beside her, causing her knuckles to bleed.

_Fuuuuu-_

Her thought was cut off by her best friend coming up behind her.

"Max... Please tell me your house didn't burn down."

Calming down a bit, Max chuckled.

"Nah, my house is still standing. For now." Max turned around and smiled at JJ.

JJ grinned. "Then tell me, what's brought the flames? You haven't punched a tree in... I don't know, but you haven't been _this_ pissed off in a while. Or, ever, really."

Max sighed. JJ was her best friend. She would help her though anything.

Recalling the events of her dreadful morning, Max explained everything to JJ. She listened carefully, nodding every now and then to show she was listening.

By the time Max finished, JJ was pretty heated too.

"That's retarded. I'm sorry, but your dad is just so damn stupid." JJ said.

"I know. And don't bother apologize 'cause it's true. He's a freaking bastard." Max replied. "What kind of idiot goes off and remarries so soon after his 'beloved' wife goes missing?"

JJ sighed. "I'm sorry this is all happening to you. First your mom.. Now, your dad. What are you gonna do?"

Max just glared ahead. "I have no freaking clue."

"It's not like you can try to stop their wedding and all.." said JJ.

Max stopped.

Why is it that she never thought of that? It's probably the most obvious solution, yet she didn't think of it. This was all getting to her head.

Turning to JJ, she said, "JJ, you are a genius. What would I do without you."

JJ tilted her head. "Wha-?"

Giggling, Max hugged JJ. "I'll tell you later. Right now, I've got to go. See ya!"

And with that, Max ran off, leaving a very confused JJ behind.

* * *

"Dad!"

Max walked into her house. School had been not as bad as she thought it would be, thanks to her plan.

"Yo, Jeb! You home?" Max called again.

"Hello?" replied an unfamiliar voice. An unfamiliar female voice.

Max slowed down and peeped into he kitchen.

There, on _her_ favourite stool, sat a red haired lady. One that she hasn't ever seen, and hopes to never see again.

"Ah, you must be Maximum. A pleasure to finally meet you!" the red haired lady said cheerily. Almost as if she's faking it.

Slowly, Max replied, "Max. Call me Max."

Red haired lady smiled that sickening smile. "Hi Max."

"Yeah..." Max nodded. "Uh, who are you?" she bluntly added.

"I'm Brigid. Your new stepmom!"

Max's eyes grew.

_Well, she didn't seem _too_ bad..._ Max thought dejectedly. But since this is her life, and nothing seems to ever go her way, Brigid... changed. In like a second.

Suddenly, Brigid's smile turned terrifyingly sinister. She even started cackling. Like a witch. Talk about creepy.

"Oh, you silly girl. We're gonna have _so_ much fun together! And your daddy will never know."

Max was frozen. "Witchy much?" she blurted.

Brigid just cackled. "If you think I'm a naive little stepmom, then you're out of luck." She stepped closer until they were face to face. "I am your worst nightmare."

They stood facing each other for a bit longer, before Brigid smiled that sickly sweet smile and walked off.

Max was still frozen.

_What has my idiot father done?_

* * *

**_oooh, what's going on? what's happening? _**

**_why is Jeb such an idiot?_**

**_who exactly is Brigid?_**

**_what does she want with Max?_**

**_...who knows. =0w0=_**

**_reviewwww! and till next time,..._**

**_-zammilicious98_**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 - Welcome to Hell**

* * *

Jeb waltzed into Max's room early in the morning. Max was actually awake, but was trying hard to sleep. Her dreams have not been so pleasant, making it hard to sleep. Getting up now was the last thing she wanted right now.

"Wake up, Snow! Today's the day!" sang Jeb.

Max groaned. "No."

"Oh, come on, Max. You have to wake up at sometime."

"No. Go away."

"Pleeeeaaaaasee?" pleaded Jeb.

Max sighed and mentally rolled her eyes. How old is he? 4?

"NO."

Jeb frowned.

There was silence for a few seconds, before Max was thrown off her bed.

Max rubbed her head and glared furiously at Jeb. "What the hell?"

"Don't use that language, Max. And I had to get you up somehow."

"But _why_ do you want me to get up so badly?" complained Max.

Jeb smiled his creepy smile. "Because today is the day!"

"For what? Is it 'to kill Max' day? 'Cause then I want some more sleep before that happens."

Jeb frowned a bit. "Max, I'm getting married today. I believe you met Brigid yesterday. I told her to just come here and meet you as you come home from school. Did she drop by?"

Remembering yesterday's little chat with said red headed bitch, Max looked away and said, "Yes."

Jeb grinned again. Yes, that creepy one.

Max rolled her eyes and stood up. "I'm out of here."

Before Jeb could say anything, Max was already out the door and running off into the streets.

* * *

"So he's getting married today."

Max nodded slowly, as if hoping this horrific fact will not be true.

JJ frowned and took a sip of her hot cocoa.

"What do I do? She's such a bitch! And he's being a bastard! I can't live with them anymore!" Max slammed her head down on the table.

"Bitches and bastards go well together though, right?" JJ attempted to humor Max.

Max glared. "Please. Don't."

"Sorry." JJ said sheepishly.

Max sighed and stared out the window. Her and JJ have been at the neighbourhood cafe ever since Max ran out of the house that morning. No matter how many times Max and JJ think of a way to stop the marriage, nothing seems to come to mind. Sure, Max had an idea the day before, but that plan involved time - something she did not have.

"I'm screwed." Max whispered.

"I'm so sorry this is happening to you." JJ bowed her head. "It's all happening too soon. It's unrealistic."

Max shook her head. "Don't be. Life's a bitch. Can't do anything about it." She looked down and massaged her temples. "Yeah, I don't get what's going on at all. Am I stuck in some stupid 'let's torture Max' story or something? 'Cause it ain't funny." Or on second thought, if it was a story, that means none of this would be true. Max mentally crossed her fingers in hope for that impossible thought.

"If only there was _something_ we could do..."

Max shrugged. She was officially out of ideas and energy. Her anger had finally run out and was replaced by sadness.

JJ continued. "Like, why can't Jeb just open his freaking eyes? Can't he tell how fake Brigid's being?"

"Obviously not. Ha, and he thinks this is best for me. As if... " Max mumbled the last part.

"Well, if it's any consolation, you can always come to my place whenever you want. Make up some excuse or something and come over. I'll always be here."

Max smiled sadly. "Thanks JJ. What would I do without you?"

JJ smiled back. "You'd be dead."

"I would."

* * *

Max stayed with JJ all day, giving her an excuse not to go home. She couldn't bear facing Jeb or even Brigid.

But she can only stay away for so long.

She slowly and cautiously walked up the steps to her front door. She reached for the door knob and hesitated.

_Breathe Max, breathe. _

Taking multiple deep breathes, she carefully opened the door, hoping to make as little noise possible.

"Max?"

_Damn it_, Max cursed silently.

Before she could turn around and escape, Jeb and Brigid came down and stopped her.

And they sure didn't look happy.

"Where were you?" Jeb barked.

Max glared.

"Answer me, young lady!"

She just glared harder.

Jeb was a tomato by now. A pretty funny sight.

"Maximum Ride-"

"Shhhh, calm down, Jebby. Take a deep breath." cooed Brigid.

Max mentally barfed. It was disgusting how sluttly Brigid was being. Even her get-up right now was... Scary. Lingerie on BRIGID? Yeah. You get the picture. She wasn't even wearing anything else. How old was this bitch, again?

Jeb started again. "Max. Where were you all day?"

"Out."

Jeb took harsher breaths. "Out where?"

"...Out."

Jeb's breathing was quickening and hard; his face a bit cherry-like.

"Maximum. Where. Were. You."

"JJ's." Not a complete lie.

Jeb seemed to have calmed down a bit. "Upstairs. I'll talk to you in a bit."

Max just rolled her eyes and went to her room.

She sat down on her bed and thought. About her mom. Jeb. JJ. Brigid. Life. Puppies. Chocolate. Her shoes. The-

"Ahem."

Max looked up. Jeb stood at her door. He closed the door behind him and sat down next to her.

"Where's Brigid?"

Jeb actually looked a little uncomfortable. "My room..." he mumbled quietly.

Max started coughing.

"Um," Jeb's face was pink. "So, you were at JJ's?"

"Yup."

He nodded. "What did you guys do?"

"What do you want, Jeb?"

Hurt crossed his face. Max had always called him dad. She was his little girl. She never called him by his name.

Until now.

"I just wanted to talk to you. Like we always do."

"Did. We always _did_. Until that psycho bitch came around." Max said grumpily.

Jeb's faced reddened. "Do _not_ call her that. That is rude. You haven't even gotten to know her. She's very nice. I know you'll like her."

Max stood up, angry. "You have gotta be fucking kidding me. She is a bitch. And yes, I do know her. She even told me personally that she's a witch. So yeah, I'm not being rude. I'm telling the truth. It hurts, doesn't it?" She glared at him hard. "What do you even know about me, anyway?"

Jeb stood up also. His face was officially bright red. "I _love_ Brigid. Nothing will change that, Max."

"What about mom?"

Silence. Jeb looked away for a second before continuing, as if Max hadn't said a word. "We are already married and-"

"_WHAT?!_" Max shrieked.

"We eloped this morning after you left. Then we were in the middle of, uh-"

Max wrinkled her nose. "I get it. _Ew_. Too much info, pops."

Jeb smiled cheekily.

"I still hate her."

Jeb sighed. "I'm sure you just have to warm up to her, that's all."

"And _I'm_ sure that I hate her. Nothing will change that." she mocked him.

Shaking his head, Jeb walked out of her room, slamming her door.

Max sat down and humphed.

Life _really_ sucked.

* * *

**i've never liked Brigid, if anyone's wondering why i put her as the bitch. lol. i also blame the fandom for making me hate her. most (all?) fanfics have some sort of dislike towards her. even if she didnt actually do anything in the real series, she has become such a bitch in my eyes.**

**yeaah.**

**and i also found Jeb to be quite an idiot. no hate for him, but no love either. sorry Jebo. XD**

**-zammielicious98**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 - Get Me Outta Here**

* * *

A month has passed. It felt like an eternity. It felt like hell.

Max just about wanted to go die in a hole. Brigid has completely taken over. Jeb is so lovestruck, it wasn't even funny. He was oblivious to everything Brigid did. Brigid made Max an unofficial slave to her, and thanks to Jeb, Max was forced to do as Brigid said.

Life was hell.

"Oh, Max~! I need you! _NOW!_"

Before Brigid could bother with coming upstairs, Max jumped out her window and dashed off.

Max had just about enough of all of this shit.

She ran and ran and ran until she came to her one and only haven:

JJ's house.

Max rang the door bell continuously until a slightly annoyed JJ opened the door.

"Keep it down, will ya?"

"Sorry. Bad day." Max walked in.

"It's okay. So what is it this time?" JJ asked, as if this happened everyday, which it did for the past month.

Max shrugged. "Jeb's out. Brigid..."

"Hell."

"Yeah." Max flopped onto JJ's couch.

JJ sighed. She hated seeing Max like this. Her best friend was always a tough cookie. But she was still human. She had her limits, and Brigid took her way beyond that.

Without thinking, JJ said, "Run away."

Max blinked. She didn't see that coming. Not from JJ.

JJ sat down beside Max. "Look. I just can't see you going on like this. I don't know if even you can put up with all this crap. I'll still be here for you, and my home is as much yours as it is mine. But you need to get away from here. Seriously, no joke. You're tough. I know you can do it."

Max looked at JJ. She had a point. This may be the breakaway that has been waiting for her to grab.

"Tell me what I need."

JJ smiled. "Let's get this show on the road."

Max smiled back.

* * *

11:59pm

_Come on, come on.._

12:00am

Yes.

Max jumped (silently) out of bed. She grabbed her little duffle bag that she packed earlier, and jumped out her window. She ran into the forest behind her house and didn't look back.

* * *

_1 hour later..._

Max collapsed into a bush. It's been an hour since she left her house and she's been running ever since. She was now dead tired.

She continued to drag herself up and keep going. Max was _so so_ tired. Even crawling seemed like too much effort.

Max collapsed again. She was out like a light.

* * *

_Another 2 hours later..._

_Crack!_

Max blinked opened her eyes. She didn't see anything weird.

"Shhh!"

"Ow! Watch it!"

"Shut up!"

Max frowned. _I must be dreaming_, she thought.

She fell back asleep.

* * *

_5 minutes later..._

"Quiet! You're gonna wake her up!"

"No, you will!"

"Shut up both of you!"

Max thought she was going crazy. She felt like she was moving. Weird.

Once again, sleep took over her.

* * *

_39 minutes later..._

"Hellooo!"

"Shut it!"

"Let her sleep!"

"But I'm bored!"

"Then go do something!"

Max slowly opened her eyes. It was blurry at first, but she soon saw 5 figures about her head.

"Wha-?" Max said groggily.

"She's awake!" cried a mocha skinned girl.

"You probably woke her up..." mumbled a tall strawberry blonde haired boy.

Max sat up. "Uh, hi?"

"Hi! OMG what's your name? I'm Nudge! My name's a bit odd, but I like it! OMG are you okay? We found you just lying there and I was like 'ZOMG!' and-" 'Nudge' was interrupted by the tall boy's hand over her mouth.

"Sorry 'bout that. Nudge is a major talker. You get used to her... sort of. Anyways, I'm Iggy."

Max nodded.

The cute blonde boy next to him said, "I'm Gazzy."

Max cocked her head.

'Gazzy' grinned. Iggy nudged him and said to Max, "You'll find out. Though you should hope that you won't."

Max raised a brow.

A cute little blonde girl beside the two boys giggled. "I'm Angel. Don't mind my brother, Gazzy. He just has a little digestive issue."

"A little?" Nudge and Iggy both said.

Gazzy cackled while Max's eyes widened in realization.

Shaking her head, Max turned to the fifth person.

A pale little girl stood beside Angel. She nodded her head at Max.

"Her name's Akila. She's mute." said Iggy.

Nudge shoved him. "Way to blurt that out, Mr. Nice Guy."

Iggy grinned and shoved her back.

Nudge frowned and shoved him again, harder, causing him to fall.

Everyone laughed; Akila and Max smiled.

"OMG HI!" Another girl came into the room, followed by a dog. A _TALKING_ dog.

Max gaped at the dog. It was impossible. This just had to be a dream.

"It's real, Max." smiled Angel.

Max blinked in surprise at her. Did she just-

"Yup."

Wide-eyed, Max just turned to the girl and the talking dog.

The girl smiled. "I'm Ella! It's so great to meet you!"

Max smiled back. She seemed very nice.

"I'm here too, y'know. Just 'cause I'm a dog doesn't mean I should be treated like one. I'm the same as all of y'ar, aren't I?" the dog barked, irritatedly.

Max looked intently at the dog. It was still too crazy for her to comprehend.

"Total. I'm Total. Not Toto, or Al, or Tal, which doesn't make any sense. Just Total. Yup. Yeah." He finished, and jumped into Akila's now open arms. The little girl pet his fur lovingly.

_He talks a lot_, Max thought.

Deciding to finally really talk, Max said, "So who are you guys? The seven dwarfs or something?"

All eyes eyed Iggy and laughed. He really couldn't pass as a dwarf. It was a funny image to imagine.

"Meh, not really, but sure. We're a twisted group of people who have nowhere else to go. We stay off the radar and just chill with each other." Iggy explained after everyone stopped laughing.

"Ah." Max said. "Do you guys, uh, mind if I stick around a bit?" she asked nervously.

Everyone looked at each other. Whether or not they were purposely trying to make Max nervous or not, they huddled and whispered and looked over at her for a good 5 mins.

Gazzy detached from the huddle and came over to Max.

"We decided that-" Gazzy was cut off by a "OF COURSE YOU'RE WELCOME, MAX!" from Nudge and Ella.

Chuckling, Max stood up and thanked them.

After asking for some rest, they all scattered out of the room, leaving Max alone at last.

_They seem nice_, Max thought. It was usually very difficult for Max to get adjusted to new things and to trust new people. But for some reason, these people that she just met felt so welcoming. They felt like some family that she never had.

She decided to stay here for awhile until she found somewhere else to stay.

At least it was away from Brigid.

* * *

**yaaaaay the seven dwarfs have entered the story~!**

**so i kind of made Akila mute little girl... but kept Total as a crazy talking dog. cuz even though i can imagine Akila as a human for some reason, Total is forever a crazy talking dog to me. i love him so much, he's hilarious XDD**

**let's see what happens next from here... \(^_^ \) ... (/^_^)/**

**-zammielicious98**

**ps. thanks for the reviews! since i had this chapter ready as well, i decided to post both because why not~**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 - Mirror Mirror Go Away**

* * *

"How do I look?" she asked grumpily.

"The fairest of them all." he replied.

Brigid frowned. She sure didn't feel like it. She woke up to realize that her little puppet Max has gone missing. _How dare she run away from me?_ Brigid thought bitterly.

"You sure, Sam?"

"Absolutely." Sam replied. He was Brigid's true lover and consort.

Brigid smiled and kissed him.

"See you later?"

Sam nodded and left the house.

Brigid sighed. Something just felt... off. But she didn't know what.

* * *

**[How do I look?]**

_**[The fai-]**_

**[Sam?]**

_**[The fai-]**_

**[Sam?!]**

_**[You are not the fairest.]**_

**[What?! Then who is this tramp?]**

_**[Maximum Ride.]**_

Brigid shrieked and threw her phone at the wall. She huffed. This couldn't be happening. _SHE_ was the fairest. Not anyone else. And definitely not that pest, Max. This was not happening.

She stared out her window. She needed a plan. Max needed to be gone.

Watch out, little Snow. I'm coming.

* * *

_Knock knock._

Max woke up to a quiet knock on the cabin's door. Even though she doesn't actually live here, she decided to see who's at the door for everyone. They were all asleep anyway.

A week had passed since she found herself in this cozy little household. She adjusted to everyone very well. Plus, it was free of Brigid, and even Jeb, so she was finally able to relax and even enjoy herself.

_Knock knock._

"I'm coming.." Max mumbled to particularly no one.

She opened the door to find a rather handsome looking boy about her age.

"Um, hi?" Max asked awkwardly.

The boy raised an eyebrow. "You are?"

"Human. And you?"

"Same. Iggy here?"

"Yup. Sleeping, but here."

"Get him."

"Demanding much. But sure. Wait here." Max turned around and went to wake Iggy.

"Iggy! Get up! A human is at the door!"

"Blahskawhonawakeyupanom." Iggy mumbled groggily.

Rolling her eyes, Max grabbed Iggy by his ankles and dragged him out of bed. She continued to drag him to the front door, despite his complaints.

"Hey! Watch it! I'm not some rag toy you can just- Whoa! Wall! Hey! Ow! Jeez, Max! You're gonna-" Iggy's rant stopped as Max dropped his ankles carelessly.

"Max, you better give me a good explanation for-"

"Hey Iggy."

Iggy looked up to see the familiar face of his best friend.

"Fangles! Nice to see ya! What brings you to my lovely home?" Iggy said, awkwardly cheery.

Somewhere in the house, a voice called out, "You're house? I do more work here than you do, so I wouldn't be complaining!"

"Nudge." Iggy, Fang, and Max said together.

"So, Fangles, what brings you to 'Nudge's' home?" Iggy said sarcastically.

"Thank you!" Nudge called out, before silence fell again. She probably fell asleep.

Iggy rolled his eyes and looked at Fang, waiting for an answer.

"The usual." Typical Fang barely said a word.

Iggy rolled his eyes again at Fang and welcomed him in.

"Okay! Intros... Fang, Max. Max, Fang." Iggy said.

Max and Fang stared at each other and nodded.

Iggy clapped his hands **(**A/N: lol i almost wrote fangs instead of hands xD**)** and turned to Fang. "How much this time?"

"Not much. Enough for a week."

"Sweet. And any news around here?"

"Yup. Pretty intense."

Iggy raised his brow. "Like..?"

"Missing person."

"..."

Iggy and Fang had sat down at this point, while Max stood off to the side.

"Fang. Wanna explain?" Iggy asked.

Fang glanced at Max. "Sit."

Max nodded and sat down.

Iggy twiddled his thumbs and started whistling something that sounded like 'Fang'.

"Some lady announced her daughter missing."

Iggy nodded and motioned for him to continue. Max however, was feeling a little queazy.

"She went missing a week ago."

Max's stomach flipped. She's been here for a week. This can't be a coincidence, can it?

"The lady's name. Brigid."

Max could've just died. Her breath caught and she her breathing got a bit rough.

Fang looked at her, his eyebrow twitching, as if asking her if she was the girl.

Max nodded ever so slightly.

Iggy was lost. "Okay? Does anyone know who this girl is? Or what happened to her?"

Max choked on a little chuckle that bubbled up her throat. She could've face-palmed right then, if it wasn't for the fact that Brigid was out there looking for her. Pretending to be the caring stepmom.

Fang added another fact. One that horrified Max to the max. "She sent a search party."

Max was frozen and wide-eyed.

"I still don't get it." Iggy frowned and looked between Max and Fang.

Fang stared at Iggy, a slight change in expression, wondering how much stupider Iggy could get.

"It's me." Max whispered.

"What?" Iggy didn't hear her.

"It's me. I'm the missing girl."

Iggy looked at Max in surprise. "Then we should get you back. I can-"

"NO!" Max abruptly stood up, still shocked and wide-eyed. "No." she said quieter.

Iggy frowned. "Why not? It would save your mom the trouble."

Max shook her head. "_Step_mom. No way in hell will Brigid ever be my mom. She's a witch. Literally. And a bitch. A witchy bitchy witch."

Iggy was silent. He gently nudged her to continue.

"She used me. My idiot father, Jeb, works 12hrs a day so he's gone a lot. Brigid takes this to abuse me without Jeb knowing." Max looked at Iggy. "That day you guys found me. The day before that, my best friend JJ told me to run away. So I did. I collapsed from running for so long, which was when you found me."

Iggy was surprised, but didn't comment. Fang was silent.

After a few moments of silence, Iggy said gently, "So that's why you wanted to stay here. You have nowhere else to go."

Max nodded sadly.

"Then you're welcome to stay as long as you want." Iggy smiled.

Max smiled back.

A slightly awkward silence fell. Iggy coughed and decided to break the silence. "Fangles, wanna show us you're treasure now?"

Fang rolled his eyes but nodded. He led Iggy and Max out the door. They walked for a few minutes before arriving in a tiny cabin.

Max elbowed Iggy. "So what exactly is all this and..."

Iggy chuckled and explained. "Fang, my best man, is a hunter. He hunts food for us, and tells us anything that goes on in town."

"Huh.." Max pondered. "Why doesn't he just live with you guys?"

Iggy shrugged. "He's a loner." He ducked just in time from a rock that was thrown at his head by Fang. "Nice try, Fangles!" Another rock was thrown. It missed. Iggy laughed.

"Although he _is_ a loner," Iggy eyed Fang carefully, "he's also a hunter. Hunters usually hunt alone. He's used to lonely, quiet places." A rock hit Iggy square in the head. "Ow! Faaaangg! That hurt! You're a meanie, Fangles!" Iggy pouted.

Fang rolled his eyes and Max stifled a laugh.

"Anyways," Iggy said, rubbing his head, "Let's go in."

They went inside. Iggy and Max sat down on the stools in the kitchen while Fang went to get his catch. He came back with a bag full of animals he caught.

Iggy grinned. "Never disappoints, do ya, Fang?"

Fang smirked.

"So," Max said, interrupting there mini bromance moment. "Wanna show me around here?"

Fang nodded and motioned for Max to follow him. He gave her a small tour of his cabin. Small as in less than 5 mins. His cabin was just that small.

"Don't you ever wish to live with Iggy and the others?" Max asked.

Fang shrugged. "Sometimes."

Max nodded off, looking into the distance. She seemed to have zoned out a bit as they headed back out of the cabin. Once she snapped back to reality (EMINEM!), she heard a noise. Something that sounded awfully like a bunch of horses running through a forest. That didn't sound so good.

Iggy and Fang must've heard it too because they motioned for Max to run inside the cabin.

She ran inside and hid under Fang's bed. Not the most comfortable hiding spot, but her life depended on not being seen, so she didn't care.

Outside, Iggy and Fang pretended to be cleaning some sticks and chatting like two normal guys.

The horses and their men came by and stopped. One man at the front came up and asked, rather roughly, "Have you boys seen any suspicious young girl around here?"

"Girl? It's only us men, sir." Iggy replied casually. "As far as we know, there's no one suspicious around here. Not in this forest."

The man eyed Iggy and Fang. He hacked and spat in front of Iggy's shoes. "You punks better not be lying to me."

Fang stepped up and glared at the man. There was something about this man that Fang did not like. "We assure you. We aren't."

Another man called out, "Ari, leave these kids alone. They said they didn't see anyone."

Ari glared back at Fang and asked, "Then do you mind if we search the house?"

Fang glared harder. His eyes caught with Iggy's for a split second. If they said no, they'd be even more suspicious. But if they said yes...

"Go ahead." Iggy said slowly. Fang, still glaring, stood back and let them in.

The man motioned the other men to search the house. They raided Fang's cabin harshly.

When they arrived in Fang's room, Max held her breath. She could be caught any second now. This could be the end.

A boot showed up right in front of her face. Max stared at it intently. Come on, come on.. Leave. she wished desperately.

"Clear. Let's go." The men left the room. These men weren't very bright.

Max let out a breath of relief. That was just too close.

Suddenly, something grabbed her ankles and dragged her out from under the bed.

Max's eyes widened as she was faced with Ari.

Ari smirked at her. "Who have we got here? What's a cutie doing under a bed?"

Max tightened her lips and glared at him.

"Come on, girl. I won't bite. What's your name?"

Max continued to glare.

Ari was starting to get pretty irritated. "I'll give you 3 seconds before-" He didn't get to finish the sentence because of a knee crashing into his family jewels.

Ari howled like a wolf. Max looked down at him and smirked. "Look at you now. Not so tough, eh?" She turned around to walk out of the room, but was stopped by Ari grabbing her ankles for a second time. She didn't catch her balance in time and fell.

Max didn't get up in time. Ari was up already and holding her down. "You ain't so cute anymore, girl." he glared. Max glared back and spat in his face. This caught him off guard a bit, giving Max an opening to escape. She opened the window and jumped down, landing gently from all that window jumping she's done before.

"Get back here!" Ari jumped down after her.

Max turned around in a fighting stance. She motioned for him to bring it.

Ari sneered and charged at her. She dodged easily and managed to snag in a punch to his stomach. He groaned, but didn't stop.

They kept at it for a bit before Max misstepped and tripped. Ari landed on top her and kept her down.

"You ain't getting out now, bitch."

Max tried to get out of his grip, but Ari was determined to keep her in her place.

"Don't even try you little-"

Ari was pushed off of Max by a fist colliding with his head.

Max looked up to see Fang looking scary as hell.

Ari turned around and glared at Fang. "_You._" he accused. "You're gonna pay for that." He charged at Fang.

Fang and Ari wrestled, dodging and punching each other. Ari had an opening and got Fang in a headlock. Fang reacted fast and managed to just get out of Ari's grip. They tumbled around for a bit, until Fang found his opening. He roundhouse kicked Ari in the head, punch him in the stomach, and kicked the back of his knees, causing Ari to collapse.

Ari spat out some blood and glared. "You got lucky. I swear next time, you'll be dead." He limped off to his horse and led the rest of his men away.

Fang continued to glare into the distance until Ari was nowhere to be seen.

Everything was silent. Fang, still glaring into the distance, spat out some blood. Max slowly stood up and walked over to Fang. "You okay?" she asked softly.

The corner of Fang's mouth twitched. "I should be asking you."

Max smiled. "Thanks." Then she shoved him. "Don't ever do that." she accused.

A ghost of a smile appeared on Fang. "No promises." he said and shoved her back.

"So what just happened?" Iggy cut into what he called 'the little Fax moment'. Iggy mentally laughed at his joke.

Max and Fang looked at each other. "Just some cleaning up of the annoying pests." Max responded; Fang nodded in agreement.

Iggy nodded off. "Okay... Who were they?"

"Who knows?" Max shrugged. "Some brat named Ari and his fellow cohorts." Her eyes narrowed. "They smelled like Brigid."

"That witchy bitchy step-mommy or yours?"

She scrunched up her nose. "Yeah. _Her_."

"Huh." Iggy nodded. "Well then. Let's go back to my place. I mean Nudge's place," he corrected himself after a weird feeling crept up his spine.

Max and Fang agreed, but when Max took a step forward, she faltered. Fang and Iggy looked over at her.

"You okay?" Fang asked, a bit worried.

Max nodded as she stretched her ankle around. "It's just really sore from that jerk Ari grabbing my ankle so hard. Twice." She stretched it around a bit more. Something just felt very off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. The feeling in her ankle suddenly went away so she shrugged it off, then stood up straight. "Okay, I'm good. Let's go." They headed towards Fang's place first to pick up their stuff before they went back to Iggy (or Nudge's) place.

* * *

"Where is she?"

Ari bowed his head, mentally scowling at the brats he had to deal with earlier.

Brigid glared down at the man. "You disappointed me."

"Wait wait wait," Ari stumbled. He didn't want to be put down by his highness yet. Even though he know he did fail his mission to capture the bratty 'Snow', he still had one more thing up his sleeve.

"What is it, Ari?" Brigid sighed, having done with such a useless sidekick.

Ari grinned. "My men had been working on an invisi-patch called 'Dokuringo', which stands for Poisoned Apple in Japanese. It slowly seeps poison into the victim. When I found Max, I attached it onto her ankle. It should gradually start to poison dear Snow from her ankle and up, until she cannot stand or even stay conscious. It'll put her into a coma and will eventually kill her. It hasn't actually been tested yet, but that is the purpose of the Dokuringo."

"I see...," Brigid said, suddenly interested in having some success. "And how long does this 'Poison Apple' take to completely consume the victim?"

"It should take about a week, your highness."

"Hm," Brigid frowned a bit. She wanted Max out and gone as soon as possible. Sighing, she decided that a week was enough of a wait. She could endure a week with Max alive. "Okay. Good job, Ari, my sweetie," she patted Ari lovingly. "Keep me up to date on the progress of Max and the Poison Apple if you can. That is all."

Ari nodded, feeling overly satisfied with having pleased his master, and left the room they were in.

Brigid sighed to herself.

_One more week, dearest Snow, and you will be done for._

* * *

**oooooOOOOOOOOooooooOOOoooooohhh~~**

**'poison apple'... i wonder where we heard _that_ from... XDD not very original, but mehh, oh well.**

**i wonder whats gonna happen next... _ ...no really, i dont know whats gonna happen next. **

**anywhoo~ revieww! till next time...**

**-zammielicious98**


End file.
